Sortee sound designer Philip T.B.C.: “Music production is a hard work”
Music and sound effects in Sortee are by drum’n’bass DJ and producer Philip T.B.C. who was, for example, an opening act for the famous Prodigy. Although Philip is a musician with over 14 years of experience, Sortee was his first game project he worked on. “Until now, I only made music the way I wanted. Contract work is different and I wanted to try it and it was great experience.” Enjoy the interview with a great producer and a legendary DJ.
Filip, Sortee is your first gaming project. What is your relationship to games?
You are right, this was my first job related to games, and it was great experience. I’m a “big boy”, but like every man I’m essentially still a child in my mind, and so I enjoy games. Our whole life is basically a big game, and one needs to stay on top of things.
What attracted you most about the collaboration?
I like exploring new things, and this looked interesting. Until now, I only made music the way I wanted and didn’t care whether anybody liked it. Contract work is different; I wanted to try it. In the end, it was fine, no run-ins and stress. I wish this were always the case with everybody 🙂
Your music style is generally rather rough, while the music in Sortee is a nice ambient dub. Was it a difficult change?
It’s true that as a DJ, I tend to play harder pieces; however, in my production I move between various styles and various degrees of hardness. I just like good music, no matter if it’s drum’n’bass, reggae or pop.
Is it a big difference to make music for yourself and for a commercial project? Is your way of work different in any way?
There was definitely a difference, but not as striking as I expected. It also depends on who you make the music for. With Sortee, it was totally smooth, communication worked fine, and when we agreed on what we actually wanted, it was all about time and “nursing” the tracks to our satisfaction.
Do you have your own recipe for composing good music? Do you have some rituals in the studio to make it work?
I wish I had such a recipe. Each track is an original; sometimes it’s a great pain, and you end up wiping out the whole project after six hours of work, and other times it’s a piece of cake. Unfortunately, the first scenario is more common, so it’s mostly time-consuming. Once I didn’t comprehend how anybody could be recording an album for two years, for example. Now I fully understand it; you really spend hundreds of hours in the studio. Even though it doesn’t seem so, music production is a hard work. Concerts or DJ performances are just icing on the cake, as a reward for the hours in the studio. But the most important thing is doing what you enjoy, so I have absolutely nothing to complain about.
What do you consider your greatest achievement to date and where would you like to get?
My greatest achievement is that I keep making music and having fun with it. Then there are partial achievements that made me happy at that moment. For example, an invitation by the Prodigy to be their opening act. Or DJ Shadow appreciating my tracks. I wanted to jump two meters high at that moment, because he’s been my idol for more than 15 years. Also a personal meeting with DJ Krush, people’s respect at concerts and parties, releasing two albums. But also waking up in the morning and being able to get up, having a place to live and something to eat. I’ve travelled around the world quite a bit and seen lots of poverty, so I really appreciate what I’ve got. And where would I like to get? Every little success is a success, and my work is to make people happy, so what else can I wish for 🙂
Filip, many thanks for the great collaboration which we enjoyed tremendously. Thanks for the interview, and keep having fun with your work.
www.PhilipTBC.com – free tracks, mixes, videos
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Philip-TBC/55972720770 – facebook fan page
http://www.youtube.com/user/philiptbc?feature=mhee – youtube channel
http://soundcloud.com/philiptbc – free album/music
